Offspring: The Akatsuki Years
by Create-tion
Summary: This is a series in companion with Offspring about Akari and her year spent with the Akatuski. It will give better insight into how exactly Itachi found out about who and what she was, how their relationship developed, and why Akari would have much rather just lived with the hoard of men than go back to Konoha...but she had too...she'd promised to...FOR MY READERS AS PROMISED!
1. Secret

The sun was setting in a beautiful array of vibrant shadowing colors. It masked the clouds above with swirling shadows like a reminder of the day. Exhaustion swept over Akari in such force that a yawn bubbled up and out of her sitting form. For a moment there was silence just before Kisame pulled the kid against his side letting her head fall against his bicep. Itachi glanced in their direction taking in how calm they now were. Earlier they had completed an Intel mission that Pein had requested Akari bait in their targets for Itachi to interrogate and Kisame to capture. They didn't make a half bad team but it hadn't been that long since Akari had been with them. He couldn't forget how she'd done everything she could to explain to him what was going on because Danzo had made her incapable of physically telling him in words. It hadn't taken him long to figure out that he'd sent her as a spy but then again she wasn't really a threat. The girl was desperately sick. She was growing more sickly by the day and he hadn't figured out why. Tonight Itachi promised himself that he was going to corner the girl and figure out why she was coughing up blood. She'd only recently started talking to everyone and he'd started teaching her how to read. Danzo had kept her so tightly under his thumb that she didn't even know how to read and write. They all delicately enjoyed the others company at this point and the silence was preferred. Kisame was the one to break it.

"So, how are the reading lessons coming along?" he asked glancing down at the child who's eyes were half lidded as she laid against him.

"Not well. I can't read anything in your guy's books. I can only read that dumb one about the duck." She snorted staring at the ground.

"You will learn in time. You are much too impatient." Itachi eyed her gently.

"If you make me read about that damn duck one more time I'm going to go insane." Akari gave him a pointed stare. Kisame started laughing but quickly tried to cover it up as a rattling cough in his chest.

"I like the duck." Itachi said gazing up at the sky. His hair slipped back from his face letting the stray lines of sunset fall over his skin.

"I'm going to skewer the duck." She muttered under her breath. Even Itachi fought back a hard laugh.

"Come on, Let's get back before Leader-sama comes to find us." He started to heave himself up on his knees when Kisame caught his shoulder. He raised an eyebrow arching it slightly on his forehead and looked to his partner. Akari was already asleep snoring lightly against the blue man. She had barely spoken a moment ago and it had been as she'd fallen into sleep. He couldn't help but shake his head and he leaned over the elder male sliding his arms beneath the girl. He stood carrying Akari back to the hideout Kisame following behind.

He'd laid her in his bed when Kisame had rounded the corner to their room from the hallway putting a hand on his hip. He tried to ignore his partner as he pulled down the black covers sliding the girl's slender frame under them. A breath slid from her lips as he leaned over her sleeping form to adjust her head on his own pillow and he stiffened. The warm air hit his neck and thoughts of a tiny Sasuke ebbed through his thoughts. Kisame watched as Itachi wrapped the soft material around Akari's body tucking her into his bed. It wasn't like his partner to be so effortlessly gentle but he chalked it up to having had a younger brother. He knew that was the main reason why he had allowed Akari to come back with them in the first place.

"You're getting attached." He stated bluntly as Itachi turned to face him. There was severe pain aching in his eyes as they looked at one another.

"Some things cannot be let go of." He muttered before pushing past him into the hallway to go to the bathroom.

"Itachi, I would protect that girl just as much as you, but we have to be smarter about this. If the others see how gentle you are being with her…" Itachi knew he was right but it was so damn hard to turn it off. It was not like he had a switch inside his body that he could automatically forget all the things that had only happened years ago to him and his family. Now, Akari was being thrown into somewhat of the same controlled situation and he couldn't help but to want to help her. He couldn't stand by and watch someone go through what he had been through.

"Then we get the others to protect her just as much. We make her the kid of the group." He said pushing the bathroom door open but stopping in the frame.

"We market her you mean? Make the others start to like her?" he asked tilting his head. This was why Itachi made the plans and he was the brunt work. He would have never thought of getting the others to like Akari so that they could ensure her protection.

"Exactly. I'm going to shower…" he said glancing back at the shark man. There was a brief awkward moment before Kisame made a face.

"Well then shut the door idiot." And he left padding down the hallway.

It wasn't until the stillness of night had settled over the hideout that Itachi really started to relax enough to begin to fall asleep. He had crawled into the bed effortlessly leaving enough comfortable space between himself and Akari that she wouldn't feel threatened to wake and find him. His body was hurting much too much to sleep on the floor this night. He hoped she'd understand which she normally did. There were certain days that he had unspoken slipped inside the bed near her and she had found him when she'd woken up. There had never been a fuss about it. They stayed on their respective sides of the bed and that was that. However, he listened intently as Akari shifted her weight groaning a little onto her left side facing him. Her face was strained and covered in a light sheen of sweat like her body was aching all over. He had felt this sort of pain before and he knew just how often your body could give out on you even when you tried to control it. She clutched her stomach as she quickly tried to detach herself from the blankets sprawling like a spider out of the bed barely moving it trying her best not to wake him; she just didn't know that he was already awake. Her bare feet slid against the hardwood floors until she hit the bathroom shaking there wasn't time to shut the door. Itachi silently made his way from the bedroom to watch her from the doorway. He watched as she bent coughing holding her insides together hurling into the sink. Even in the dark he could see that blood coated the basin as she struggled to breath. It was then that he saw it. Her eyes blazed red in the darkness surrounding her doubled in the mirror above her head. He stood stock still as this new piece of information hit him.

"Your eyes…" he whispered causing her to stumble backwards as she jumped catching the sink to grip it.

"I-itachi…"

"You're sick because you have our eyes." He came closer immediately making her back up towards the shower behind her. She looked terrified and tried desperately to blink and shut them down but it was no use.

"I didn't…it wasn't…I can't…" she shivered trying not to throw up again. His fingers touched her chin gently before lifting it up examining the sharingan staring back at him.

"I could have never imagined. That's amazing…why did you not tell me?" he asked sighing he pulled her against himself and just hugged her like he used to hug Sasuke. Now he had to protect her.

"I've never told anyone because I couldn't." she shivered against him her face nestled against his chest.

"Well don't worry about that anymore." He told her as he helped her to sit on the edge of the sink. "I'm right here."


	2. Prove Yourself

Hiden stared somewhat unamused as the girl brought recently to the hideout moved about the kitchen. Itachi had come to him earlier with some nonsense about her being a valuable asset to them. He'd said that she specifically had unpractical talents that sooner or later they would all see. In fact, that afternoon he'd agreed to train the girl. He wasn't happy about it but since Itachi refused to tell him where her talents laid he wanted to know. She flitted into the kitchen, her silver hair frayed about her shoulders, and traveled over to the fruit bowl. Honestly, that had been the only thing he'd seen her eat the entire time she'd started coming out of the Uchiha's room. Her fingers picked delicately over the different sized fruits before pausing over a vibrantly yellow apple. It was like watching a beaten animal being presented with a piece of meat. She had come a long way as far as eating food went since they'd brought her here but he could still see the hesitation in her eyes. She took a slow breath before rubbing the skin off on her black tank top and glancing around the kitchen. Akari always checked to see if anyone was nearby before entering or leaving the kitchen. She always looked like she was afraid she'd get caught; as if having clean fresh food was a crime.

"You do know that you're allowed to eat?" he asked tilting his head to the side smirking as she tried to slink from the kitchen and around the hallway corner. She stopped making a face that was a cross between fear and annoyance.

"Yes. I know I can eat." Her sarcastic snappy tone was obnoxious.

"Then stop muddling around the place like a whipped dog." His eyes met her's and there was a suddent intensity behind those pupils that made him pause.

"I am _no one's dog._" She spat with venom. Hiden put his hands up in a calming gesture.

"No offense meant there kiddo." Her shoulders relaxed a fraction. "So, what do you say to training later?" he'd actually yet to ask her as Itachi had instructed.

"What?" Akari coughed on a small chunk of apple. "I mean…I er…guess so." Earlier Kisame had given her a lecture about getting to know more of the members. Some crap about being part of an organization meant knowing your comrades. She really doubted that because she'd grown up with the ROOT and they had never taken the time to get to know her.

"Good. Noon then. That's an hour from now. Go ahead and get ready." He shrugged and went back to reading the paper in his hands.

Later that afternoon Kisame, Itachi, Zetsu, and Kakazu had gathered outside to watch the sparring match between the girl and Hiden. Itachi was tersely agitated as he stood with his arms crossed over his chest staring over the training grounds. He idly reminded Kisame of a hovering parent. The boy was worried and trying not to show it instead letting it filter off as anger. He chuckled eyeing his partner and just shook his head. Hiden was in the process of dragging his giant scythe over his shoulder making his way towards the dirt patch where the match would officially begin. Akari looked nervous but was standing her ground. Her movements were fluid as she stretched her arms and cracked her neck. She'd strangled her hair back into a formal bun to avoid it getting in her eyes during this fight. Everything was hitched to this here and now. Itachi had delicately planned this as the introduction to her Sharingan. He knew that Hiden would not hold back during even a sparring match so he was fairly certain that she would have to activate the Sharingan in order to keep the upper hand. He was also assured that once the others saw this they would become enamored. It would doubly gain her some respect. The others gave him a wide berth most days and Akari would need them to understand that she was a force to reckon with. Respect first, that was the hardest part, and then they would create partnerships. This girl would get to know what having people around her truly meant. If everything went as planned she'd have the guys around this place wound around her pinkie.

"Here we go runt." Hiden finally called to her. Akari stopped stretching her right arm and gently let it come back down against her side.

"Ready." She breathed out glancing over at Itachi and Kisame. In her entire life she had never had anyone to stand on the side for her; no one to encourage her. It was still a weird feeling, as Kisame nodded smirking to her and Itachi made eye contact, that someone was supporting her. It made a faint feeling of swelling inside her chest.

"Go!" Pein yelled as he walked outside to join the others. Itachi eyed him suddenly. "What? I wanted to see what you were bragging on her about."

Akari did not normally attack first. It wasn't the way she operated. Her general plan of defense was to egg the opponent into attacking first so that she could begin to assess their skills. Why bother throwing time and energy into an attack strategy only to waste chakra when it wouldn't work. Her left foot shifted back through the dirt only enough of a fraction to allow her to balance her weight for immediate movement. Hiden tapped the sickly curved edge of his scythe to the ground as he grinned. That weapon was going to have to be the first thing to go. Akari knew that she would have to separate him from that thing or she was going to lose her head. He charged her suddenly without any time or manner of thought. He was fast. He raised the scythe over his head and attempted to swing it down in a great wide arc towards her neck. She dodged backwards eyes growing wide at how close his precision was. A fraction of an inch and she'd be mortally wounded at the moment. Cussing she drew a kunai as he swung against connecting metal to metal.

Akari hunkered her shoulders into the block and rammed strength into the connection. She wanted to test how much he could throw her back if she was putting enough effort into it to keep him at bay. Hiden gritted his teeth circling the blade unlocking their stalemate. He narrowed his eyes letting his brow settle over his forehead in confusion. For a tiny little brat she could block well. Not to mention she'd blocked almost the instant he'd attacked which signified vast speed. He clicked his blade from the chain laughing and prepared to swing it again. He was going to drive her back to the tree line, snare her in the roots, and hack a finger off to remind her not to train with him again. Akari watched as he smirked and sucked in a quick breath just before he swung again. Six inches. She had six inches of spare room to maneuver away from him. His radial distance was farther now because he had detached the instrument but she still had speed to gain separation. Quickly she made hand signs to charge her right arm and as the blade cycled forward she caught it with a lightning blade. The energy sparked traveling up the metal weapon and jolted into Hiden's arm. It had enough voltage to it that his skin sizzled where it had seared his palm.

"Holy Hell!" he snapped dropping the scythe instantly. That was her chance. Akari darted forward and thrust her face inches from his own. She pulled her charged arm back and threw it forward with enough force to drive in the wall of a house. Due to Hiden's nature of using a weapon he was not primed for hand to hand combat on a regular basis. The brat had caught him off guard and played his weaknesses like a string. As her fist connected he took a step back absorbing the blow. Hiden grabbed her arm and flipped her twisting her body down into the earth with a hard thud. The air puffed out of her lungs as he reached for the scythe. Akari's back felt like it had literally been severed mid length but she knew she had to move. All of these guys were bigger than her and she forgot how easily the bigger opponent could slam you around if you didn't keep moving. She ground her teeth together hauling herself up as a faint swooshing sound graced the air near her head. Nimbly she flipped backwards but only in time to miss the majority of the hit. His blade connected biting deep into the flesh at her forearm causing a spray of red about the air. Arms crossed in front of her face for protection Akari was shifted back a few feet where she had blocked the cut; her arm was bleeding badly but that wasn't what stopped Hiden.

Staring at him from the crest of the tree line, he now understood what Itachi had meant earlier. This girl was attributed to unnatural talents. This brat was an Uchiha. Akari realized vaguely that if she hadn't activated the Sharingan there would have been no way to dodge the last attack as quickly as she had. However, she was not prepared for what the rest of them would do. Hiden was currently staring at her as if she had formed into a giant dragon with three heads. Past his form Kisame was smirking and Itachi was watching with a calculative glare. It was Pein that caught her eyes though; the man had actually nodded his head in improvement, as if her ocular skills had given him reason to appreciate her fighting. No one had ever looked at her like these guys were staring now. She had always just been a tool…but they weren't thinking about how they could use her…they were actually just seeing her.

"Well that's great. Another sulky depressed teenager with looks that can literally kill." Hiden rolled his eyes letting his weapon rest on the ground. "We're all screwed." She laughed despite herself. A grin had broken out onto her face leaving behind the stress of a girl she was becoming less familiar with. Akari couldn't help it. She wanted this. She'd needed this.

"Actaully, she's not from my clan." Itachi spoke up glancing at Akari.

"Than how…" Pein started rounding on the Sharingan user.

"Hatake, Kakashi." Itachi responded idly. He looked at Akari for some sort of recognition. Her eyes swelled with emotion when he said that name. No, she didn't need actual words to confirm it. He knew she was banned from speaking a word of her origin anyway. He knew instantly that his assumption was correct. This was the daughter of the legendary Copy Ninja.


	3. Broken

Itachi watched silently from the bed while Akari sat on the floor bent over the new book he'd given her. Her eyes were narrowed and her brows tilted inward with confusion, frustration, and agitation. Her knuckles had begun to tighten around the spine while she let out a short breath before slamming it shut and throwing it across the room. Its pages flapped as if trying to fly as it soared across the expanse of air. There was a loud thud where it landed before falling to the floor. She pulled her knees up to her chest hugging them setting her chin gently on top. Akari very deliberately refused to look up at him as she glared steadily at the wall. He made a face watching her as he shifted his leg on the bed sighing. She was always so impatient. It often reminded him of Sasuke the way she would throw slight off-handed fits like this. She was unlike his brother though in the fact that they were silent. It was rare that she would mouth back or yell when she became angry; instead, there was a foreboding unnatural sense of calculation behind those angry eyes. He knew that she was trying desperately to learn to read. It had been something kept from her for so long that there was a lingering hunger to be able to write and communicate with others; to form pictures inside her head like everyone else. She wanted to be like everyone else. He'd opted to give her that here. Seeing the way she'd been ripped apart and whipped like a dog had angered him enough that he'd enlisted Kisame in not only protecting her but giving her an actual childhood.

"I can't do it." She whispered from where she sat curled up on the floor.

"Yes you can." He replied shortly.

"No. I can't." the girl snapped back rounding her angry glare at him. "You have no idea what this is like." She whispered turning her outburst towards the floorboards.

"You're right. I don't know what it's like to be learning to read at your age…but I know that you are smart enough to do it." He began to move his legs shifting them off the side of the bed.

"I don't understand it. Any of it." Water was forming at the sides of her eyes. Itachi stilled himself. "I can't make out the letters. They all switch up…" she wiped forcefully at her face trying to rid herself of the wet mess now.

"The letters are moving around?" he asked trying to clarify what she meant. She nodded in response sniffling and trying to clear her throat.

"They move sometimes after I think I've read the word…the first letter's at the end and the end is in the middle…sometimes the space is gone…words run together." Itachi let out a breath before chuckling. He moved off the bed the comforter slipping to the ground by accident as he moved. He leaned down kneeling in front of her and reached forward. Although he was one of the few people she had grown to trust there was always an adverse reaction to someone touching her. She flinched backwards marginally before allowing him to touch her chin lifting it to look up at him.

"You can read. You need some more help. I didn't realize you were having trouble with the letters." He used a gentler tone of voice. "You can read. Your brain isn't letting you. It's not your fault and it can be fixed with some different training." As she started to shake her head and pull away he put his forehead against hers.

"You can't fix me." She'd said as he closed his eyes holding her there.

"Yes I can." He assured her pulling her into a hug. "You don't need fixed. There is nothing wrong with you. There have been people who've hurt you. There have been people who've wronged you. But you…you aren't broken. You don't need fixed. You're better than what they did to you." He felt her body tense up before relaxing as she sat in his arms. She was so tiny like Sasuke had been.

"I'm not broken?" she whispered softly, her voice strained. It was like trying to say that even as a question didn't make sense to her.

"You're not broken." He said again.

Akari sat on the back porch watching the sunset with her back against the railing as the others meandered about the grounds training and talking. This place had become her new home and she was growing fond of the stinky slobbering gross men. They were protecting her. That alone was foreign in every meaning of the word. Kisame was standing just behind her arms crossed over his chest leaning against the building wall watching over the grounds as well. Although she got the feeling that he was keeping an eye out for her as well. Itachi was about to be dispatched on a mission by himself to collect intel and she didn't like to be alone. While he was away she would stay in their room and use his bed which should have made her uncomfortable but it was more like staying in a safety room. Kisame's foot nudged her hip and she turned to look back up at the shark man. He was grinning down at her in a teasing manner like a crazy but loving uncle.

"What?" she smirked putting her arms behind herself propping her torso up.

"I think Leader wanted to talk with you tonight kiddo. Just reminding you to mind your manners." She sighed before frowning.

"I know, I know. Be nice. Speak when spoken too. I'm really good at taking orders you know." He laughed.

"You don't have to take these orders though. Leader will hear you out sometimes if you object. He won't make you do them. It's not like what you're used to." She bit her lip chewing on it a long moment.

"What do you think he wants?" she asked.

"With him it's hard to tell but I'm guessing it's not good if he waited until Itachi left to talk to you." That little worm of information embedded itself in her head quickly. She hadn't thought about it that way. Now she was nervous. What would make Itachi upset that Leader had to say…


End file.
